Caspase-3 cleaves hnRNP K in erythroid differentiation

Post-transcriptional control of gene expression is crucial for the control of cellular differentiation. Erythroid precursor cells loose their organelles in a timely controlled manner during terminal maturation to functional erythrocytes. Extrusion of the nucleus precedes the release of young reticulocytes into the blood stream. The degradation of mitochondria is initiated by reticulocyte 15-lipoxygenase (r15-LOX) in mature reticulocytes. At that terminal stage the release of r15-LOX mRNA from its translational silenced state induces the synthesis of r15-LOX. Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein K (hnRNP K) is a key regulator of r15-LOX mRNA translation. HnRNP K that binds to the differentiation control element (DICE) in the 3' untranslated region (UTR) inhibits r15-LOX mRNA translation initiation. During erythroid cell maturation, activation of r15-LOX mRNA translation is mediated by post-translational modifications of hnRNP K and a decrease of the hnRNP K level. To further elucidate its function in the post-transcriptional control of gene expression, we investigated hnRNP K degradation employing an inducible erythroid cell system that recapitulates both nuclear extrusion and the timely controlled degradation of mitochondria, mediated by the activation of r15-LOX synthesis. Interestingly, we detected a specific N-terminal cleavage intermediate of hnRNP K lacking DICE-binding activity that appeared during erythroid differentiation and puromycin-induced apoptosis. Employing mass spectrometry and enzymatic analyses, we identified Caspase-3 as the enzyme that cleaves hnRNP K specifically. In vitro studies revealed that cleavage by Caspase-3 at amino acids (aa) D334-G335 removes the C-terminal hnRNP K homology (KH) domain 3 that confers binding of hnRNP K to the DICE. Our data suggest that the processing of hnRNP K by Caspase-3 provides a save-lock mechanism for its timely release from the r15-LOX mRNA silencing complex and activation of r15-LOX mRNA synthesis in erythroid cell differentiation.